In what ways do you think John's vision of Jesus differs form the Jesus he knew in person?

Answer 1

Those who study the Historical Jesus attempt to put a chronology of Jesus of Nazareth from lineage directly back to King David, from details of his life and death recorded by contemporaries, through the chronology of the writings of Apostles to the establishing of the Christian Canon 300+ years later by the Council of Ephesus (325 AD). It should be noted that a large number of Christians do not accept or believe in the efforts and conclusions reached by scholars pursuing the Historical Jesus idea. The first known written record of Jesus' life and teachings is called the Q Document. It supposedly has in it notes of the teachings that appear in the four Gospels. The author of the Q Document is unknown and the writing themselves do not lend themselves to narrative. Not all scholars accept this document as canon in Holy Scripture. The letters that Saul/Paul wrote to the Christian communities he established seem to have been written between 40 and 60 AD. With respect to the four Gospels, researchers date the writing of the Gospel of Mark to the period between 55 and 65 AD. This was the first of the four Gospels of the Christian Canon. Its brevity could indicate that Mark's intended audience was universal. Matthew's Gospel is directed at the Jews for establishing Jesus as The Messiah. It was written during the period of active warfare between the Israelis and the Roman occupation. That would place Matthew's writing of his Gospel around 70-75 AM. Luke's Gospel appeared during the early 80s AD, was written in Greek and directed to a Greek culture that was ubiquitous during that period. Later, Luke wrote about the Act of the Apostles following Pentecost. None of the four Gospels include the activities following the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The question of a possibility of John's vision of Jesus being different from the Jesus he knew in person does not take into account that the Gospel of John was written around 120 AD. John himself, or the authors writing from the perspective and teaching of John the Apostle, could not have known Jesus in person, i.e., prior to the Crucifixion in 33 AD. The Gospel of John differs from the other three Gospels because it is written to affirm Jesus as Christ to the several Christian communities, that is, to believers in Jesus as The Messiah. The purpose of this Gospel is not to convert non-believers, but to enhance and deepen the faith of the early Christians being persecuted by Jews and Romans. If one accepts the time and audience researchers have concluded about the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelations, then the question of difference is moot.